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Oklahoma can't afford to whiff on Bowe Bentley after recent recruiting loss

ByNicholas Rome|
Dec 27, 2024; Fort Worth, TX, USA; Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables yells out to his players during the fourth quarter against the Navy Midshipmen at Amon G. Carter Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Dieb-Imagn Images
Dec 27, 2024; Fort Worth, TX, USA; Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables yells out to his players during the fourth quarter against the Navy Midshipmen at Amon G. Carter Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Dieb-Imagn Images | Andrew Dieb-Imagn Images

On Thursday Night, the Oklahoma Sooners suffered a blow to its recruiting class as four-star quarterback Jaden O'Neal decommitted from Oklahoma. The news didn't come as a shock as the Sooners have been focusing on uncommitted quarterback Bowe Bentley while Jaden O'Neal started to take visits elsewhere.

On3's Industry Recruiting Rankings rank Jaden O'Neal as the 234th best player in the Country, the 16th best quarterback, and the second ranked player out of Oklahoma. Losing Jaden O'Neal could come back to bite the Sooners if they aren't able to lure in Bowe Bentley.

Oklahoma can't afford to whiff on Bowe Bentley

After losing Jaden O'Neal, the pressure is on for Oklahoma's coaching staff as they have to land Bowe Bentley. O'Neal was committed to the Sooners for a calendar year but, as the staff started to focus on landing Bentley it pushed O'Neal to another program.

The biggest threat to Oklahoma in the race for Bowe Bentley has become the LSU Tigers after Georgia landed the Nation's top quarterback Jared Curtis. The Tigers have a great pitch to make Bentley as they hold commitments from two of the Nation's Top 10 WRs with a great track record for developing star Quarterbacks.

This Summer, Bowe Bentley has taken official visits to both programs and all that's left now is for him to make a decision between the two. Given that Bentley moved his visits to both programs up on the calendar it's likely that a decison is made in the near future.

For the Sooners, if you don't land Bowe Bentley there aren't many other ways you can pivot in this recruiting class. The vast majority of the Nation's top quarterbacks are already committed which makes it difficult to start recruiting a new QB this late. If the Sooners land Bentley it's a massive success but, if they whiff on Bentley, the decision to push O'Neal to the side could haunt the Sooners.

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